Im just going to go out on a limb here and say Ross has hit the wall, look so exhausted tonight he and Demar actually I guess Pacers physicality carried over a couple of days the Raps won ugly tonight Jhonson And JV gotta share that energy, and Lucas played for his bench position tonight lol.

Ross' defense was pretty awful, it's probably a good thing he was planted on the bench. Gotta be held accountable to some extent

Caseys system has been on the rise lately really makes me think higher ups were impacting some of his moves. Ya though Ross and Demar just didnt have anything tonight Raps were looking past this game imo just ran set 1on1 plays lack of ball movement this game shouldnt have ever been close.

I only caught some portions of the game.
What happened with Demar? Why was his production so low tonight?

He was just Demar, being Demar.

ďThe saving of our world from pending doom will come, not through the complacent adjustment of the conforming majority, but through the creative maladjustment of a nonconforming minority.Ē - Martin Luther King

"Just Demar being Demar" is usually along the lines of 17-18 and 4. Maybe stop expecting him to be a superstar and realize he's a really good 2nd option. Tonight just wasn't his night and an off-night is gonna happen to most guys in this league.

The Tonious35 2.10.2013 NOH vs. TOR at-the-game-report

I have a two week vacation to Toronto (from my job in Edmonton) and I will spend two of my 13 nights in the confines of the ACC. Tonight was for the NOH game and on Tuesday I will also see the scary-good-and-no-longer-thuggish-tatooed Denver Nuggets team.

Tonight, we were against a fully manned NOH squad featuring the 'Brow (Anthony Davis), the Venzualean Scrapper (Grievus Vasquez), injury-recovered Eric Gordon, and the 3-pt dead-shooter Ryan Anderson. I was expecting this game to be a close one and have a nail-biter with Gordon going psychotic, 'Brow dunking the rim off, and Ryan Anderson making me say profane material with every nailed 3-pt he make.

Low and behold a few things today did not go the way of NOH and it allowed the new feelin' GAY Raps to pull off a controlled 102 - 89 victory at home. I was watching the game at section 116 row 15 and seat #4. I was a few feet away from the "hallway" were Colangelo leans on. I actually finally saw Wayne Embry walk out of the hall and chilln' like your grandpa on a Sunday morning.

Now I am going to get to the point and do the game summary five points each quarter.

*Bargs was not even in the ACC??? Traded to ....no, he had a flu (over-boozing?)

1st quarter: - Lowry was feeling it, took it to Vasquez early, played good controlled defense on Vasquez, nailed some emergency shots when time was running down, and used his dribble and Gay's presence to find Amir and finish some fast-break opportunities.

- Eric Gordon was totally not feeling it today and DeRozen kept up with him on defense.

- Gay Dunks were awesome and alley-oop was NICE, thanks to the defense.

- Amir was finding all opportunities to cut to the basket and finish the close ones, and Amir was totally out-working an under-weighted, uninvolved 'Brow.

- Big Val started positive and did anything to help the team rebounding and bodying Lopez.

32 - 21 Raps

2nd Quarter: - 11-points lead shaved to -2 in the quarter, problem was the 2 minute window Casey gave NOH with a terrible lineup: DeRozen, a gassed Amir, Lucas, Alan Anderson, and a totally off-night from Ross

- This Roberts guy made Lucas look very stupid, took advantage of the size he had on Lucas and fueled that comeback.

- DeRozen just did not make the game look easy for him, from where we sat, he still needs a lot of work on his dribbling and attack routs to the basket or his sweet spots. Okay he made up for it with that dunk, but that was it.

- Ryan Anderson is expected to be that white-guy who shoots threes very well, but he plays rough, and will fight harder than anyone would expect for rebounds. Sigh...if Bargnani could do the same in the last 4 years, we would have no problem with that.

- Alan Anderson plays within himself most of the quarter and had one defensive assignment he was doing well at: Stop Ryan Anderson from setting up for the 3pt.

50-47 Raps

3rd Quarter: - The Gatorade of both teams were spiked from 12:00 - 6:00. Sloppy basketball by every one.
- Anthony Davis is just getting beat this quarter and can't get ANYTHING going
- Ryan Anderson showing more B-ball IQ, bodying Anderson and going inside for some scoop shots
- Eric Gordon nails his first Jumper, I was afraid it was going to get him going.
+ Lucas nails the shots that usually makes the entire ACC go "Noooooo..S#@%"

69-66 Raps

4th Quarter: - Lucas just keeps on nailing every shot, channeling his inner Jameer Nelson, and all the teammates are feeding the *HOT* Hand. Casey sensed the hot-hand and let Lucas take over.
- J-VAL out-working Lopez on every possession, tipping back missed shots from teammates, nails Anderson politely to the ground.
- When Al-Farouq Aminu checked in, I pumped my fist and said *YESSSSSS* (Chris Smoove was always right about Aminu)
- Gay stopped shooting the three and looked aggressively for efficient baskets.
- Defense tightened and took away the efficient options for NOH. Letting Robin Lopez shooting a jumper means good D by the Raps or bad O by the Hornets.

102 - 89 Raps

Player Grades:

Hornets

Grievus Vasquez: B- Defence was meh, but displayed his full aggressive ability to get efficient baskets at any opportunity.

Eric Gordon: D+ From what I expected of him, this was the worst showing I have ever seen from him and now I know to some perspective NOH fans would want him traded for useful assets.

Anthony Davis: D for DISAPPOINTMENT. Did not battle out Amir or Jonas for any position and assert himself in the paint, played right into the hands of the Raptor paint patrol.

Robin Lopez: B Played almost equally tough ball on Jonas and Amir, looked for his efficient spots in the paint, but missed some free throws.

Ryan Anderson: A Drained the limited threes he saw, used his size to over power Alan Anderson, fought hard for rebounds. Smartest Hornet on the floor.

Austin Rivers: C+ Nailed some open looks and used his limited dribble on match ups or late coverages. Fast, but not smart at all. Needs to read from the book of JJ Reddick to make an impact in the NBA.

Brian Roberts: B Used any advantage against John Lucas to start the 2nd quarter rally. Good pull-up game.

Jason Smith: C No you are not Amir Jonhson, don't shoot the elbow, just get offensive rebounds and put-backs.

Raptors:

Kyle Lowry A- : Asserted his dribble and found teammates in the paint and on the fast break. Defended Grievus enough to avoid the back-breaking 3s.

Demar DeRozen: C- Kept Eric Gordon in check, but faltered on offense and did not make the game easy for himself.

Rudy Gay: B+ Good all around defense (okay his SF match ups were horrible compared to him). Took him two quarters after the 1st to find his efficiency spots. No Threes please, not until another time.

Amir Johnson: B Great 1st quarter to start it off. Took the 'Brow out of the game physically an psychologically. Casey left him on too long in the 2nd and gassed out. Usual, but not amazing Amir game.

Jonus Valanciunas A: Worked hard against the scrappy Lopez and patrolled the paint. 34 minutes and posted a well earned double double. Saw Ryan Anderson as Tyler Handsborough and decided to take revenge on him. The key player to secure the 4th quarter.

Alan Anderson B : Would of been an A if he did not try to go 1 on 2 at a couple of possessions. Played Ryan Anderson pretty decently to avert a 3pt barrage, and forced him to score for two and drain time.

John Lucas A-: One of the factors allowing the 1st quarter lead to disappear. Made up for it by nailing a bundle of triples in the 4th quarter, and rare occasion Casey gambled with JL3 and won the bet.

Landry Fields B: Rusty on offense, but he was there to stop any momentum from the match up that NOH started in the 4th (Vasquez, Gordon, and Rivers).

Terrence Ross D: Limited playing time, but he was not that involved or into it leading to the 2nd quarter choker.

The potential. Especially having Bargnani, Fields, AND Ross coming off the bench? Watch out.

Cant wait for next season, DC no doubt coaching from the get go to his his strengths and having BC but out of how the team should flow, Rookies in their Sopmore years and over all more talent + familiarity Raps should be a shoe in for playoffs maybe even make second round again.

No doubt starting PF and back C and PG need addressing and i'd love having Kris Jospeh as our third string SF/SG other than that im happy with the roster

Cant wait for next season, DC no doubt coaching from the get go to his his strengths and having BC but out of how the team should flow, Rookies in their Sopmore years and over all more talent + familiarity Raps should be a shoe in for playoffs maybe even make second round again.

No doubt starting PF and back C and PG need addressing and i'd love having Kris Jospeh as our third string SF/SG other than that im happy with the roster

Ridnour is a pipe dream. I would love to pick him up in the off-season, and trade Bargnani + Anderson for a backup C and PF.

Very cool post from at the game. I plan to be at the Golden State Warriors game then plan to travel to LA to see the boyz vs the Lakers

1st qtr was awesome. Lowry was dishing and driving. Love that he was passing the ball. My heart stopped at some of the 3 attempts, but he hit them so I can't complain. Looking forward to him playing like that more often. Your our starting PG, you have to strive to average 8 assists per night. Don't care how much you score.

Which brings me to JL3. If we can expect 1 good game out of 5 bad ones, that is not good enough. Really feel it can work if it involves the same elements last night. AA driving and creating opportunities. Even when he misses (which is happening often lately) he still creates a chance for offensive boards by Amir & JV or dishing to Rudy or JL3 for three. It was at a good time, we got the win......but it is not sustainable. With a jump shooting team when everything is dropping it's all good.....but when it's not how are we gonna adjust.

Most positive thing for last night to me was
AA driving and creating opportunities.
Amir not fouling out
Lowry getting a good rest
Rudy closing
All while JV & Ross get to play.